For a second straight session on Thursday, prices for gold, silver, and platinum declined, while palladium gained. It marked the third consecutive session of losses for the three precious metals.
Gold for December delivery shed $6.20, or 0.3%, ending at $1,968.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The precious metals are feeling the pressure of rising U.S. Treasury yields and an up-trending U.S. dollar index," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
"Traders are awaiting the U.S. data point of the week on Friday: the U.S. employment situation report for July. The key non-farm payrolls number is expected to come in at up 200,000 jobs, compared to a rise of 209,000 in the June report," Wyckoff said.
Gold futures traded between $1,964.50 and $1,974.50, after slipping by 0.2% on Wednesday, falling by 1.5% on Tuesday, and climbing by 0.5% on Monday to register the highest settlement since May 15 and log an increase in July of 4.1%.
Elsewhere, silver for September gave back 17.5 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $23.697 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $23.41 to $24.94, after falling by 1.9% on Wednesday, dropping by 2.6% on Tuesday, and rising by 2% on Monday to score the best close since July 19 and mark a 8.5% gain in July.
In other precious metals prices on Thursday:
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October platinum fell by $8.60, or 0.9%, to $921.80 an ounce, trading between $918.50 and $931.60.
- Palladium for September delivery tacked on $15.60, or 1.3%, to $1,257.40 an ounce, ranging from $1,220.50 to $1,262.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
A day earlier, on Wednesday, the U.S. Mint did not publish any new sales for the week, but it did adjust its sales figures for July. There were no bullion sales changes published on Thursday.
The table below presents a breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products sold, with columns indicating the number of coins sold (not total ounces) during different time periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday / This Week | May | June | July | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 60,500 | 35,000 | 41,000 | 666,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 18,000 | 1,000 | 0 | 73,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 32,000 | 4,000 | 0 | 132,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 80,000 | 60,000 | 0 | 385,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 47,000 | 17,000 | 16,500 | 293,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 1,593,000 | 1,482,000 | 209,100,000 | 11,815,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 1,200 | 3,500 | 0 | 12,700 |
